Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXIII · 9:23pm Jan 12th, 2023
Hello everyone, and welcome to 2023! As a reminder, from here on out these blogs will be happening only once every other week instead of weekly, which is intended to free up some of my own time for things other than reading horsewords. As a consolation prize, I’m going to try to go back to my old 10-reviews-per-blog system. We shall see if I’m able to keep it up all year.
I had three weeks of vacation built up, and I used that extra time to finally get back into original fiction reading. You’ll find the first result of that effort in this blog, and now I’m reading Bradley P. Beaulieu’s Twelve Kings in Sharakhai, which has been an interesting story so far. I may post a review for it here. I’m also thinking about posting some original fiction reviews I’ve been holding on to for that review site I was thinking about but never got around to making.
I’ve also gotten back into watching some TV series, although I question why we even call them that anymore considering most people get them via streaming services now. I was reminded last month that my internet service comes with HBO included and so decided to take advantage of it. I’m finally getting to watch Rick and Morty, which I always avoided for no other reason than buying the seasons on, say, iTunes felt like highway robbery. It’s every bit as good as everyone claims.
I’ve also been watching an HBO original series called Folklore. The concept alone fascinated me: each episode centers on a different folk tale or urban legend from southeast Asia, and each episode is written by, directed, and stars people from the country it is set in. So I get to hear stories about creatures and myths we don’t usually hear about in the states, made by people I’ve never heard of from cultures I don’t know, and it’s horror-centric? Sounds like my cup of tea.
The first season felt sort of like a “monster of the week” format, often with the creators trying to do a lot without enough time to do so. Definitely a teething season. The second season, on the other hand, has much better focus on the stories, such that the strange and ghostly encounters feel less like the point and more like the catalysts for the real story. I’m enjoying season two far more as a result, and am saddened that I’ve only two episodes one episode left.
I think I’ve rambled enough. We all know what you folks are really here for, and after a two-week hiatus I imagine we’re all chomping at the bit to get started. Shall we have some reviews?
Stories for This Week:
Thrifted by stillwedding
Rarity in Slumberland by Botched Lobotomy
As the Raven Flies by Amber Spark
Forever Young by Trick Question
The Black Between the Stars by Rambling Writer
Disease of the Soul by Dilos1
Bedtime for Princesses by Michael Hudson
At The Drop of A Hat by Tchernobog
The Wishing Stone by Fervidor
Secret Tea by Jack of a Few Trades
Star Overhead Volumes One and Two by Zachary Nieves (AKA KorenCZ11)
Total Word Count: 212,628
Rating System
Why Haven't You Read These Yet?: 2
Pretty Good: 6
Worth It: 1
Needs Work: 1
None: 0
Thrifted
4,771 Words
By stillwedding
Discord enters a thrift store and is shocked to discover Twilight’s half of their friendship necklace on display. There’s only one way it could have ended up there, and Discord is shocked by just how hurt he is at the fact.
There’s a ton of potential in this idea, which is what drew me to it. Alas, I am not satisfied. The story begins with Discord discovering that Twilight threw out his demonstration of friendship, then going hunting for an explanation. This lasts for maybe a quarter of the story, then the rest of it is Twilight feeling guilty and going on a day-long research binge in search for a way to access Discord’s extra-dimensional home, only to conclude with a quick-fix conversation in which Twilight and Discord claim they really are friends.
Not buying it.
For an infraction like this, one would expect Twilight to have to do more to redeem herself than an apology and a replacement necklace. And Discord goes on to claim that he ‘appreciates’ Twilight as a pony and friend, and I’m like “He does? Really? How do we know that? Because he said so, as if that means anything at all?”
This is supposed to be a story about the potential for friendship between Discord and Twilight, right? So instead of spending most of the story following Twilight as she works through the technical technicalities of accessing a chaos dimension, why don’t we skip all that and have Twilight and Discord have, y’know, an actual conversation on the topic? One were they air grievances, ponder solutions, and acknowledge why they have any reason to look upon one another as friends? This is a friendship that requires building up, not a quickie make-up session.
But no, stillwedding expects us to just accept that Twilight’s sin can be swept away without addressing any of the underlying problems that led to her behavior in the first place. How long before she commits another grievous error that shows just how little she actually cares about Discord? Not long, I imagine.
None of this is helped by the writing, which is… ouch.
With a click, he heard too many times Discord was gone.
Twilight turned around to meet them. And instantly smiled at the pony.
Twilight dabbled in many forms of magic, after all, she was the element of magic.
It was contradictory, for Twilight, who reinforced harmony casting chaos was almost impossible.
Ouch.
Yeah, stillwedding needs an editor pronto.
I still really like the idea behind this story. If it focused more on the actual relationship between Twilight and Discord instead of all the work required to get them in the same room, it might have been golden. I’m willing to accept the plot issues as the teething problems of a relatively new author, and I still have every intention of reading The Fragrance of Dark Coffee once it is completed. But the bad grammar really needs to be dealt with.
Bookshelf: Needs Work
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
New Author!
Rarity in Slumberland
6,391 Words
By Botched Lobotomy
Change can be good. It can also be hideous. An older Rarity watches as the fashion industry becomes a fashion industry, devoid of creativity and charm. As she watches the love of her life waste away into tastelessness, she begins to dream. And in her dreams she is met by a most curious creature.
I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this one. The writing style is vivacious and strange, gleefully tossing a rebellious middle finger at such things as punctuation and grammatical rules. The good news is that the right touch can make such a style work wonderfully, and Botched Lobotomy knows how to control this sort of whimsy and keep it from going out of control. This alone would be enough to make the story interesting.
Through this playful prose we get to watch Rarity as she in turn watches her beloved fashion industry crumble into conformity, industrialization, and the pursuit of profit. For all its mischievousness, the narrative does an excellent job in crafting a full picture of Rarity’s growing disgust and feelings of being overwhelmed. It’s very vivid, maybe even intense.
And then there’s the dinosaurus in the room. When Rarity sleeps, she dreams of the 1914 character Gertie, one of the world’s first cartoon characters, and the odd narrator of her show. As time passes and she comes to know Gertie and the narrator more, it becomes clear that this is more than just a dream. Though they may only meet in these times of slumber, Gertie and the narrator seem as real as can be. There’s a great mystery here, one that Rarity never bothers to ask about and Botched Lobotomy never bothers to resolve. Even so, the “why” of it doesn’t seem to matter quite so much as how these dreams impact Rarity and her decisions in the real world.
One must wonder what Princess Luna might think if she knew about this.
Vivid, unconventional and full of meaning, this was a treat I doubt anyone saw coming. I made it a point to watch the Gertie short before reading this; Gertie is a surprisingly entertaining and lovable character for what little we know of her, and Botched Lobotomy captured that well. I loved how Rarity’s plight was connected to that of Bertie’s creator, Windsor McCay, how that connection drove her to try new things, and even how the author managed to link all of this to canon in a subtle way I’m betting many won’t notice at first.
This was a win on all fronts. Although I haven’t read the other stories in the contest this was created for, I’m not surprised to see that it won.
Bookshelf: Why Haven’t You Read These Yet?
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
New Author!
As the Raven Flies
11,066 Words
By Amber Spark
Sequel to Teahouses of Saddle Arabia
Something is wrong with Sunset Shimmer. Everypony can see it. Her friends, Princess Celestia, and even Celestia’s dear seneschal, Raven. But Celestia has vowed to stay out of it, convinced that her interference can only make things worse. And so Raven decides to take matters into her own hooves.
As of writing, this appears to be the last story in Amber Spark’s Wavelengths of Time AU. Continuations were promised, but alas, the author’s productivity seems to have faded in the last couple years. Mayhap someday we’ll get more, but I won’t be expecting it; I of all people know what it’s like to have to say goodbye to a long-running series before it could hit its climax.
Let that not diminish the value of this story, however. It’s our first real look at this AU’s rendition of Raven from her own perspective. Many surprising things are revealed about her in the process, enough to make readers (and Sunset) curious without ever offering any straight-up facts. This is one of the things I like about this series; it’s ability to hint at more to come without making those hints seem irrelevant to the ongoing events.
The writing suffers from some flubs, particularly at the beginning. I’ve come to take those in stride, although every time I see them I wish the author would have been a little more cautious. Despite them, the narrative does a great job showcasing the mood of our characters – relying far more on Show than Tell, but not leaning so hard on it as to make things indecipherable. Unfortunately, I would recommend having read the prior stories to better grasp what is being discussed here. Not the entire AU, but at least the Dreamers Arc.
An optimistic story regarding everyone’s favorite “royal secretary”. I’m certainly glad to have gotten to it. Now I guess I’ll have to read something outside this AU at last.
Bookshelf: Pretty Good
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
The Cloudsdale Report — WHYRTY?
Habits of the Equestrian Phoenix — Pretty Good
Princess Celestia: A Brief History — Pretty Good
The Application of Unified Harmony Magics — Pretty Good
A Study on Chaos Theory — Pretty Good
Forever Young
14,280 Words
By Trick Question
Requested by Trick Question
At only nine years old, Rumble has been approved by Celestia to receive an Infinity Band. If he chooses to accept, he will remain a nine-year-old colt forever, or at least for as long as something other than illness and old age comes along to end him. His mother – who sent his application in without consulting him – is through the roof. His brother… isn’t. And now Rumble has to make the most important decision of his life long before anypony would ever be ready to do so.
This is a strange story. Complex. Confusing. Even a little creepy at times. It’s set in a world where Celestia rarely gives out these bands that prevent all aging and illness forever, but only to foals, and only if they haven’t hit puberty or earned a cutie mark. Why does she do this? Nopony knows, for she refuses to say. Theories abound though, and some are speculated upon in-story. Some think it’s because children spread hope and therefore immortal children are better suited to the task. Others think it’s to ease the jealousy of the average pony regarding the eternal life of alicorns. At least one pony thinks it’s purely to satiate the desires of pedophiles.
We, the readers, are left to form our own conclusions.
TQ warned me this was a controversial one, and hoo, is that statement accurate. Personally, I think the revelation that these foals don’t have any independence in their existence at all makes the sacrifice far too great, but I’m a freedom-lovin’ Amuricun with a libertarian slant. As we see in the story, most foals chose to go through with immortal childishness and come out perfectly happy as a result, even a few hundred years on; a big part of the story is Rumble talking to other foals who already made this decision.
That’s a little of an odd slant, though. I feel like the major flaw of the story is how one-sided everything is. Sure, Thunderlane and Cheerilee are opposed to this “Frozen Foal” idea, but they’re not frozen. Rumble only speaks to two Frozen Foals, as they’re the only ones in Ponyville. That’s not a big pool of experienced opinions to draw from, both think being Frozen is a good thing, and the second one blatantly assumes Rumble’s choice is a given. This is a skewed sampling. Why doesn’t Rumble get to hear from frozen foals who don’t think it was the best decision of their now-eternal lives? Shouldn’t their opinions be heard as well?
Granted, Rumble is only nine, and as hard as he might try he’s not near mature enough to think of the situation in such a manner. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t think about it long and hard or have doubts. He absolutely does, and good on him. I like that TQ makes it more than a quick decision – although to be honest it still felt quick, but the attempt is there.
It’s a weird idea being explored here, but it’s also a worthwhile thought experiment. It’s an entirely different direction to take the whole “immortality” question. I’ve seen “child is immortal” before in various media, but I don’t think I’ve seen it explored as it has been here. I think TQ could have explored it further, but it’s not bad for what we’ve got. As one who enjoys exploring worlds based on thought experiments, I approve.
The only serious caveat is the discussion with Cinnamon Tea. I don’t disapprove of him being here or the discussion in general, but I can certainly see readers finding him and his opinions deplorable. The saving grace: even Rumble was disturbed. Here’s hoping readers can take that fact in before they start making any wild accusations.
A weird setting with some weird implications to form a complex thought experiment that leaves a lot for the readers to figure out on their own. I liked it, but I think individual readers will have wildly differing opinions.
Bookshelf: Pretty Good
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
The Knight and the Knave — WHYRTY?
Broken Symmetry — WHYRTY?
Familiar — WHYRTY?
The Phoenix Festival — Pretty Good
Shoot for the Moon — Pretty Good
The Black Between the Stars
98,269 Words
By Rambling Writer
Alternate Title: Even in Space, Nopony Fucks with an Apple
Applejack had one job on the Golden Oaks: produce food for the rest of the space station’s 200+ crewmembers, and maybe come up with a new and improved strain of apple while she’s at it. Up here she can work with her hooves instead of letting automated harvesters do everything for her like what’s happened back at Sweet Apple Acres.
Then she wakes up in the station’s trash disposal, about to be crushed and turned to molten slag. She’s lost a week’s worth of memories, ponies are turning up dead all over, and something is up there with them.
Applejack really doesn’t like space.
To be clear, this is a thematic crossover with the 2017 FPS Prey. I have yet to play it. It’s definitely on my to-do list though. The good news is that this is the best kind of crossover, i.e. the one where anyone can thoroughly enjoy the story without any knowledge of the inspiration.
The gist: An alien race known as changelings have infiltrated the station and begun slaughtering the residents indiscriminately. Applejack is a farmer with engineering knowledge who, by virtue of refusing to die like a good meatsack, has to do something about it. This is a distinct AU, so all the rules can be thrown out. For one, alicorns are no longer immortal and the next ruler is chosen by the current one. So for this story the ruler is “Sun Queen Celestia IV” and her chosen successor is, naturally, Princess Twilight Sparkle, who was hoof-chosen over the queen’s actual son, Prince Blueblood. That’s just a taste of the differences you’ll see in this world, but they’re mostly given through suggestion and supposition rather than a direct exploration of the concepts. This is fine by me, as it leaves room for the primary plot, i.e. Applejack kicking alien changeling butt.
Speaking of, the changelings have been altered in ways that fit both the crossover and the AU appropriately. They’re no longer an age-old enemy of Equestria but a new threat descended from the stars for the sole purpose of annihilating all other life in the solar system. They even appear different, possessing some of the same shapes but being made up of some kind of black, amorphous material. This was clearly done to help maintain the imagery of Prey and I wholeheartedly approve; it takes what we’re all familiar with and turns it into something far more harrowing.
The story is quite the thrill ride, containing many of the things you’d expect from a science fiction story of this variety. Space walks, technobabble, a super resourceful protagonist, ponies just as threatening as the aliens. Applejack goes through a lot of shit just trying to stay alive, to say nothing of trying to keep the ponies around her alive as well. The technology is less Star Trek and more Aliens, with characters fighting with shotguns trudging through long, cramped hallways rather than lasers and teleporters. It really has a Dead Space aesthetic to it. As any good writer should, Rambling Writer made sure that everything around Applejack has its limitations, and thus keeps things interesting by making her go around said limitations in whatever way she could.
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that this is a story with a lot of death. You will see a lot of familiar names, favorites from the show that we have all come to appreciate to some degree or another. Here’s your warning: they will die. Many will be found after the fact. Others will be alive and pleasant in one chapter and brutally murdered in the next. If you have a favorite pony, cross your fingers and pray, because there’s a very good chance he or she will go down, and it won’t be pretty; Rambling Writer understands that sometimes what we don’t see is more haunting.
That being said, I do want to mention a few names. For starters, I am greatly pleased that Applejack ends up spending most of the story partnered with Trixie. In this story, Trixie is a former thief turned white hat hacker, and she is invaluable to AJ’s progress. It was an unexpected matchup, but Rambling Writer made it work wonderfully.
There’s also Twilight, who of course had to be visiting the space station when shit went down. She’s great in this story, and I love that in the late game she was mature enough to realize that, sometimes, you have to be willing to make sacrifices for the greater good. It was a brief moment, and nothing actually came of it, but I appreciated it nonetheless.
Others make good impressions as characters. Head of Security Spitfire, who constantly struggles to keep a cool head despite knowing that her every decision may (and does) lead to more dead ponies. Spike, in this rendition an adult (or maybe “older teenager” by dragon standards?) who comes in like a badass and really holds his own. Blueblood, who is only a side character yet has some pretty decent moments of character growth.
There are a handful of problems, but I think the worst is also related to the characters: some of them tend to vanish. Rainbow Dash, for example. She appears, makes some nice contributions, then they get to the safe space on the station and she just… uh… disappears? I don’t mean like changelings took her or she wandered off, I mean the story stops bringing her up entirely. Poor Zecora gets it even worse, showing up for just long enough to seem like she’s going to be an important addition to the character roster only to vanish from the plot without a trace. I’ll grant that there’s plenty going on without them, but you’d think they’d at least get a mention.
The only other question I have relates to the changelings themselves. These things have established, clearly, that they are a massive and massively genocidal force. They’ve crossed galaxies and exterminated untold numbers of sapient species. And, okay, the ones on the Golden Oaks were dealt with.
But how could that possibly be it? Am I really expected to believe that the entire summation of their race was on this one little space station? That there are no more out there, looming, ready to strike? I dunno, feels like something worth at least addressing.
But these are minor niggles compared to the overarching “yes” I have for this story. Rambling Writer’s prose is such that every action scene works wonderfully to me, varying between minimalism and vivid description to great effect. Applejack’s situation is ever dire, and constantly seeing other, familiar ponies dying all around her makes one wonder exactly how or even if she’ll get through it. The end result is a thrilling adventure that kept me eager to see whatever might be happening next. I’m glad I decided to give this a look, and I really hope I get to play its inspiration sometime soon.
Bookshelf: Why Haven’t You Read These Yet?
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
Before Closing — Pretty Good
Brittle — Pretty Good
Rigid — Pretty Good
Before Dark — Pretty Good
A Break in the Clouds — Pretty Good
Disease of the Soul
35,876 Words
By Dilos1
There are many things Princess Celestia has come to regret in her long life. The most recent one is the disappearance of Sunset Shimmer, lost to a mirror world some three years ago. One night while pondering this failure, she is surprised to discover that Sunset recently left a new message for her in the linked journal. Exactly how recently is unclear. All she knows is that something terrible has happened in the human world, Sunset is begging for help, and she must answer the call.
To be clear, this is set in an AU where the EqG world has been hit by a fast-acting plague that has driven humanity almost to extinction. I believe it’s also set before Twilight’s alicornication, although this is never clarified. The story follows Celestia as she and six of her royal guards enter the human world hoping to rescue Sunset Shimmer.
I am… frustrated. The content of this story is the kind of stuff both horror fans and sadficionados will love. The setting is creepy and gloomy as can be, the dangers serious, and the situation constantly bleak. If I were to judge the story on this alone, it’d be getting top marks.
But I can’t, and problems abound. The two biggest both involve the writing. There are copious amounts of added or missing words, a problem that occurs at least every other paragraph but sometimes as frequently as multiple times in the same one. It’s egregious at best and makes me wonder if Dilos1 made any attempt to proof the story at all.
The second problem is in the writing style, which is telly and redundant. I don’t know how many times I saw a concept explained twice in the same sentence, as if the author thought we were too stupid to grasp it the first time. Also, stuff like this:
But through her long life however…
Like I said, redundant.
Thinking about it, I get the feeling that Dilos1 was trying to create some sort of heavy atmosphere. This didn’t work, because their method seemed more focused on using as many words as possible versus using the right words. Sentences become long, meandering, repetitive quagmires that are hard to follow or just come out clunky, and that’s not even considering the telly nature of it all. They improved somewhat in the later chapters, but never really escaped the problem. At least their comma use mostly got righted; at the start of the story there was a terrible habit of ignoring comma usage where it was definitely needed. Which is the opposite problem from what I usually see, so points for bucking that trend I suppose.
So yeah, the writing is a struggle, particularly in the first half. The story itself was… mostly good. Really, I genuinely liked what Dilos1 was trying to do here. Had the writing itself been better this would have landed on my top bookshelf with ease. Exploring a dead world with dangers unseen but no less deadly, a constant sense of dread as bodies pile up, and a continuous worry as to how or even if this can end well.
In this aspect I find only three issues, none of them serious detractors. The first is that Celestia’s behavior never struck me as that of… well, a 1,000+ year-old (demi?)goddess and monarch. She just seemed too panicky, too frail, too mortal. I don’t mean that in terms of actual immortality so much as life experiences. I just feel like the real Celestia would be more capable and in control than this one was. I’m willing to put that down as subjective though, which is why I call it a minor issue.
The second comes late in the game when Celestia gets separated from her guards. How? Unclear. It just… sort of… happens? Even when we go back to the guards’ perspective for a brief time, there’s no indication of how it happened. And then, suddenly, they are able to find her. Again, how is unclear. For that second one there is a perfectly legitimate reason that can be assumed, but there’s no confirmation and we’re just left hanging on the matter. The whole thing felt like a weak excuse to get Celestia alone for some solo horror antics.
But the one that really bugs me is the ending. Essentially, Celestia has just doomed Equestria. No, seriously, it’s gone. The story never says as much, trying to paint a bittersweet “and they all moved on” sort of conclusion, but no, Equestria’s dead. Why?
Because it has been made absolutely clear that this mysterious disease that has destroyed the human world targets all species, human or otherwise, and that characters from Equestria are not immune. Celestia and her guards just waltzed through an entire city of the dead and dying with no medical protections whatsoever, occasionally coming in direct physical contact with the diseased or deceased. Then they go home and we’re expecting them to have not brought this thing with them?
Yeah. Equestria’s fucked.
…
Might make for a good sequel though.
All in all, this was a great story with minor plot issues but glaring and constant writing problems. If you can get past the errors and have a thing for horror or sadfics – really more the latter than the former, but it qualifies for both – then you may find something delightful, inasmuch as one might call the events of this story “delightful”. But I empathize that the barrier for entry is high; the first two chapters had me feeling like I was wasting my time with this one. Once we finally got to the human world proper then things started to get interesting, but that’s still ~9,000 words of bad writing and grinding pacing to get there.
Give it a chance if you’re into the genre, maybe you’ll be able to tough it out and enjoy the story. The rest of you might want to give this one a pass.
Bookshelf: Worth It
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
She's Definitely Got The Mane For It — Worth It
Bedtime for Princesses
1,552 Words
By Michael Hudson
Starswirl has faced many challenges in his life. None compare to what he must go through every night these days. Namely, making sure a pair of filly alicorns brush their teeth and go to bed on time.
Do you want diabetes? Probably not. This story might be worth the risk though.
There’s nothing complex about this. It’s Starswirl trying to convince a presumably preteen Celestia and her barely-able-to-talk little sister Luna that they need to get ready for bed. Foalish shenanigans ensue, including Luna having bursts of uncontrollable magic, an upside-down Celestia pretending to read in hopes Starswirl will grow bored, and book forts.
A feel good story of no consequence, but it didn’t need to be anything more. Give it a go if you want to see the Royal Sisters being little kids.
Bookshelf: Pretty Good
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
A Mare's Last Heat — Worth It
Twilight is a Zombie — Worth It
At The Drop of A Hat
23,906 Words
By Tchernobog
Co-written with more writers than I could feasibly state here.
All Applejack wanted to do this morning was finish her chores and spend the day with her best friend (and maybe more) Rainbow Dash. Then fate decides to craft a Rube Goldberg machine’s worth of nonsensical coincidences, all for the sake of keeping AJ’s hat well away from her. What follows is a long and crazy journey across Equestria to get her hat back. Rainbow Dash decides to tag along. Because that’s what, uh, “best friends” do.
This is a giant collaboration work, with each chapter written by a different author with zero planning amongst said authors. There’s no mention of any special rules to this, so I’m assuming that each new author knows everything that happened in the story so far.
The end result is a surprisingly fun little adventure involving socialite parties, train robberies, and a spider cult just to scratch the surface. Plus AppleDash shipping, because of course. There will be moments that don’t make sense, such as that one time an author made Discord show up for no reason except “let’s put Discord in this chapter”, or the ninja whose purpose, intentions, and loyalties appear to change with every chapter. Numerous cameos will be made, including the likes of Lightning Dust, Trenderhoof, and Trixie. When I say it all out loud, it kinda sounds chaotic, but it’s “controlled chaos”, meaning that everything you’re reading somehow works in the current context.
In the end, this is a story you read if you want to have fun. Don’t fret over the plot logic, for while it is surprisingly sound in many ways there will inevitably be parts where you realize something doesn’t add up. As long as you keep in mind how the story was written you’ll probably be able to let that slide. Heck, I won’t be surprised if 90% of the readers don’t care about the issues so long as they’re having a fun adventure with AJ and RD.
Jump in and don’t think about it too much.
Bookshelf: Pretty Good
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
Felt Heart — WHYRTY?
Mood Wings — WHYRTY?
Minor Details! — WHYRTY?
The Wishing Stone
12,613 Words
By Fervidor
Rarity’s birthday is tomorrow, and all of her friends are preparing a surprise party! Of course, Rarity is too smart and observant not to notice and read all the clues, but she’s sporting enough to let them have their fun. What she doesn’t know is that planning the party is turning into something of a nightmare, and a certain red gem Twilight received in the mail isn’t helping matters.
I halfway expected a siren to start singing in the background.
I was a bit worried in the first half of this. Fervidor’s character work is great, the narrative is fun, and all of the Mane Six have relatable problems. But at the same time, I was halfway through the story and it didn’t feel like a lot of progress had been made. Yes, things were happening, but how was the story supposed to wrap up in such a short time?
Then the climax – and in particular, Rarity – comes along, and suddenly everything works. Well, not everything, but I’m getting ahead of myself. The point is that all the pieces fell into place with surprising smoothness despite how it all seemed at the start. I look at this and I wonder if Fervidor didn’t get halfway through the story, realize he was going too slowly and finished the latter half in a rush. If so, they managed that rush with about as much grace as could be hoped for, even if that means we had to skip out on some of the more potentially interesting bits. Alternatively, Fervidor decided to go for an unorthodox approach. Either way, they pulled it off.
I should also note that I loved how contradictory Rarity is in this story. There’s this scene where she starts singing about how it’s her birthday and comes out looking so delightfully, comically self-centered. It’s the playful, whimsical version we all knew from the early seasons, which makes perfect sense considering this was written in 2013. Then the Big Moment™ comes along and reveals her to be every bit as selfless as her Element suggests. I suspect some may see it as an inconsistent characterization, but I thought it suited her remarkably well.
I also like the idea of Pinkie Pie having a freakout upon discovering that ponies have culinary preferences and dietary needs. Today we know she has carefully maintained records of these things for everypony she knows, but back in 2013? Fervidor had no way to know about it at the time, but the idea that this story serves as the origin for her Party Cave in later seasons is a nice one.
The only thing that really bugs me is Spike. He fell victim to the stone as well, and yet he’s the only character in the story whose issue doesn’t receive any kind of closure. It’s outright ignored beyond a small suggestion that he was embarrassed about it. That seems unfair, especially when we consider how his wish conflicts with Fluttershy’s. Yet even as I point this out, I must also admit that I’m not sure what Fervidor could have done about it. The story is already over 12k words long and, like it or not, Spike’s issues are not at the core of the story; writing about it may have only served as wordcount padding and tangential drama, drama that also would have been hard to mesh with the rest of the story’s overarching tone. So I don’t know. Maybe it’s just one of those things we have to put up with. Lesser of two evils and all that.
Anyhow, this was a fun little story, and not anywhere near as dramatic as the cover art suggests. It’s got a “thriller” tag, but honestly, there’s nothing in here that I felt contributed to such a genre. The whole thing felt more mischievous to me rather than tense or dramatic, which is what I tend to associate with thrillers. Ignoring the fact that the show was adamantly against giving any of the Mane Six romantic interests up until it was all but over so who cares, this would have made for an episode easily. Maybe even a two-parter.
Overall, I really enjoyed this one. It’s playful and captures the over-the-top nature of Rarity in the early seasons quite well, and while it felt a little slow for the wordcount at the start Fervidor pulled off a generally satisfying conclusion.
Bookshelf: Pretty Good
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
Paper Promises — Pretty Good
The Incidental Pony — Pretty Good
Secret Tea
3,904 Words
By Jack of a Few Trades
Ever since their heart-to-heart in the caves under the Castle of Friendship, Ocellus and Smolder have been having secret tea parties where the latter can let her “inner girl” loose. But this time Smolder’s acting… strange. Guarded. Ocellus needs to get to the bottom of this.
Here we have a delightful story about self-identity and the pursuit of happiness. Not only that, but we get a window into what life was like in the Hive during Chrysalis’s reign. Put them together and the result is a heartwarming moment of growth and companionship between these two characters. I especially appreciate the angle of different and changing cultures.
I wasn’t sure what to expect going in, but this was not it. If you came here expecting just to watch Smolder having a tea party, you’ll be disappointed. Perhaps that’s a good thing, for the actual story is deeper and more interesting than that. With a solid narrative voice, great grasp of the characters, a sprinkling of worldbuilding, and a pleasant lesson, it’s a winner in my book.
Bookshelf: Pretty Good!
Previous stories reviewed for this author:
Without Another Word — WHYRTY?
Hindsight — Pretty Good
Hot Cocoa is Illegal in Yakyakistan — Pretty Good
Double — Worth It
It's Always Sunny In The Everfree — Worth It
Bonus Review: Star Overhead
Volume One and Volume Two
229 Pages (Combined, Hardback Copies)
By Zachary Nieves (AKA KorenCZ11)
Dawn lives a somewhat boring life in the tiny, ever-foggy town of Downbeat. Boring, that is, until a giantess riding a flying motorcycle bashes her head in with a guitar.
Rebecca Caelum just moved to Downbeat thanks to her father being reassigned. Maybe life in a new place will let her and her father get over the shadow looming over both their heads.
Finally got around to reading these! These books are intended to serve as original fiction rewrites of KorenCZ11’s FIMFiction tribute to the anime FLCL, also called Star Overhead, which is a must read for any fan of the anime in my opinion. Koren – sorry, shall we stick to Zachary for the purposes of this review? – decided that the story of Star Overhead needed to be completely reimagined for the original fictionication. This has led to the complete reimaginings of character backgrounds and a bottom-up rewrite of the story.
The purported main character of the piece is Dawn, our “not-Twilight” who longs for her mother and dreams of aliens. She meets – in violent fashion – the giantess Solei (AKA “not-Celestia”) who starts crashing at her house to the joy of her smitten father. But this is only the setting; Dawn’s story in Volume One comes to a lightning quick conclusion. In fact it’s so fast that I question why Zachary even bothered to make it a book separate from Volume Two. Seriously, this thing might as well be a pamphlet rather than a “book”.
No, the story really begins in earnest with Volume Two and the introduction of Rebecca, our “not-Rainbow Dash”. A juvenile delinquent who looks at illegal magic duels as a way to be friendly, Rebecca quickly finds herself caught up in the madness of Dawn’s life after Solei makes her an offer she can’t refuse. While Dawn’s introductory piece does little more than set the scene, Rebecca’s comes with family drama, new friendships, and discovery. It’s a fascinating and vastly superior piece of work that expands upon the world, the culture, and the characters in great ways.
My only serious worry with this rendition of Star Overhead is its similarities with FLCL. In a way these were inevitable, seeing as the original story was itself a thematic crossover with the anime. But as an original fiction? Ehh… I mean, odds are most people these days might think FLCL is some strange ice cream flavor they’ve never heard of. But those readers who know the anime but not the MLP version of the story might look at it and think it’s copying existing material. I can even see some accusing Zachary of borderline plagiarism. For people not in the know this may be a fantastical fantasy adventure in a new world, and that’s fine. I just worry about what the knowledgeable few will think.
My second, not quite so serious worry stems from the nature of the first book. It’s an introduction, it explains absolutely nothing, and the unfamiliar may reach its conclusion and go “Wait, that’s it?” It might feel like a whacky bout of nonsense with no overarching purpose. As crazy as the antics are for Dawn’s opening number, in terms of plot it might feel underwhelming. I fret that it won’t encourage potential new readers to continue on to Volume Two, which is where the plot really starts to shine. Which is why I question the wisdom of printing these as two separate volumes (and also why I’m placing them under a single review).
If you can get past these things, you’ll find a story about two high school girls who desperately miss their mothers, the giantess perfectly happy to manipulate them into doing things for relevant information, and one’s fury upon discovering the truth. Coming with a fresh new magic system, effective visuals and ever-interesting character developments, I found it greatly enjoyable. It’s also a very different story from the FIMFiction original, and thus worth the read even for those familiar with it. I for one have every intention of reading the third book before too long.
Bookshelf: Pretty Good
Stories for Next Time:
Lady No Longer by KingdaKa
Sea of Stars by wishcometrue
Livestream by bahatumay
Burnout by Silent Whisper
A Long Night by INeedSleep
Sunlight by The Albinocorn
Girlfriend Friend by Tangerine Blast
Obsolete by Taialin
I Cast a Deadly Shadow by Horse Voice
My Little Investigations: The Silent Dirge by Metool Bard
Recent Review Map:
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXVIII
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXIX
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXX
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXI
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXII
You Are Here
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXIV
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXV
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXVI
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXVII
Paul's Thursday Reviews CCCXXVIII
Glad to see more endeavors into the realm of original fiction from the community!
I didn't expect the collab to get a review! They were fun to do. There was another one on someone else's account, I can't remember which. I think this one was overall the better of the two though.
Thifted looked interesting to me, so I'm saddened if not altogether surprised to hear it dropped the ball hard on fulfilling its premise. On the other hand, Rarity in Slumberland remains a corking dreamlike fic, and while it's certainly not the easiest fic to grasp (and even less easy if one has no familiarity with Gertie or doesn't watch her short before reading it), once one learns to roll with the offbeat prose style that breaks the rules in the right way, it's great, playful and quite poignant. Can't recommend enough, and it looks like you agree! And I'm always impressed with any fic that can make you not mind that a mystery isn't answered.
Given how small their library is for such an excellent author, I'm sure I'll read At the Drop of a Hat soon enough, even if I tend to be skeptical of the whole relay co-author race tactic, if anyone could pull it off, they could. And as a short little sugary snack, Bedtime for Princesses looks okay, might poke at it when I need a short break.
Lastly, it's a pity I find it so hard to get into Sci-Fi with Pony, despite liking the genre normally, because Rambling Writer is a quality author, and yet I don't know that, even as a standalone crossover with a FPS game, The Black Between the Stars is quite the fic for me. If I'm gonna do pony sci-fi, it's gotta be the absolute best, and not a novel, at least for now. Ah well.
…You know, you are right, ten fics a week does produce quite the range. I has something to say on half of these! That's actually a better ratio than some of your normal five-a-week reviews. We'll have to see how many grab me going forward, though looking at the ones for next week, other than Girlfriend Friend (which I've already read) and Sea of Stars, nothing leaps out as for me much. Not without seeing what you have to say first, anyway. So until then, I guess.
Funny you should phrase it like this, because Alien: Isolation was a major influence in the last third or so of The Black Between the Stars. I had this track from the game as my own personal score for one certain scene.
As for the criticisms, yeah, those bugged me, too. Part of the problem was that I had some cool scenes planned out, but I forgot to kill my darlings, so some characters wound up by the wayside. It didn't help I basically started the story because the idea of crossing over Prey with Friendship is Magic refused to leave my head (and the protagonist was always Applejack). If it had been an idea that I had more of an investment in, I probably would've spent more time planning the entire thing rather than a few setpieces and hammering out who did what. Still, a get-it-out-of-my-head obligation is no excuse to half-ass things, so I did my best with the main meat of the story, and I'm overall pleased with the result. (Judging by the rating, you are, too.)
5708499
Regarding sci-fi fics, if you don't mind incomplete ones, Odd_Sarge is currently publishing Cypress Zero, which is five chapters/20k words in and off to a very strong start. Sarge has said it's fully written and chapters will be published weekly, with an ending word count of around 120k. Just FYI.
FWIW, before you even mentioned that being a FLCL crossover, the initial description had me thinking, "Hey, this sounds exactly like FLCL." I also doubt that show has exited current public consciousness—they made two sequels just a few years ago, and there are two more in the works. Plus it's considered a classic.
Hello, do you think you could review my fanfic, Sunsets Shattering, when it comes out?
5708498
Truth be told, I didn't realize it was a collab until well after I'd selected it for review. I just saw a silly story about AJ trying to get her hat back, which is an oddly rare but always fun premise. Yeah, sometimes I pick stories without reading the fine print.
Hey, I had no idea you were reviewing these, so that's pretty cool. I appreciate it.
As for the reasons for book one being a pamphlet falls into why it's self published in the first place. Back in 21, I had written the first three books with the intent that they be one unit. Star Overhead: Instant Music was what I tried to sell to agents and not a single one ever asked for futher contact. After about half a year of this, i said fuck it, we'll do it live. However, when it came to books 4 and 5, the former being about a third complete at this point, they were going to be big stories on their own. To mitigate having a giant book series aimed at anime/cartoon fans, I decided to try and cut them like light novels, which are only about 50K words per book on average. So, Volume X, a cover done by my artist for each girl, and there's Volume 1 & 2. Add onto this Volume 1 is cheap, a quick read, and easy to give out to whoever, I tend to buy few just to hand out when I meet people.
media.discordapp.net/attachments/951958788443885599/1063465681418465371/20230113_083154.jpg Here's a fun little comparison of all the spines together. Where the original story is 155K, book 5, which was supposed to be half of the second part of the trilogy, is 120K.
5708499
A pity about the sci-fi thing. I myself am not big on science fiction, either as a writer or a reader. I only have one big sci-fi idea in my head, and I was never able to write it in a way that I felt worked. But I do like reading it from time to time.
If you're looking for a sci-fi short to try out, I might recommend SS&E's Hello, Sedna, Iceman's Friendship is Optimal, Rust's Rocketmare (not sure if it qualifies as science fiction, though), Meta Four's Alarm Clock, or JawJoe's Rainbow Dash: Re-Animator. And this isn't science fiction, but I saw it while perusing my WHYRTY bookshelf for them and thought it warranted a mention: KitsuneRisu's The Incandescent Brilliance.
5708512
I'm pretty sure I know exactly which scene you're talking about. When I was reading that scene in your story I had a blatant Alien: Isolation vibe. But I didn't call it out because I haven't played Prey and thought maybe it had a similar moment inspired by A:I itself.
5708517
ORLY? I didn't know that, but I shouldn't be surprised. I honestly think I was too young to "get" FLCL when it first came out, but looking back on it as an adult I've come to realize why it was so good. Someday I'll have to rewatch it, and maybe the newer stuff too.
5708532
Sure, just remind me when it releases and I'll add it to my lists. Don't expect the review to drop quickly, though; I'm currently booked through March.
5708577
So you're pulling a J.K. Rowling, i.e. the lengths of the books grow at an exponential scale with volume? I can dig it.
I'd been holding onto the books for ages, not reading them because A) I was kind of strapped for time and B) I wanted to distance my brain from the FIMFiction version first. Then I got back into reading original fiction, saw them on my bookshelf (a physical one, that is), and questioned why I hadn't read it yet. So yeah, here we are. I also dropped a review on Amazon, though I don't think it's gone live yet.
5708583
That's fantastic, I was going to ask you to do that anyways. It really means a lot to me, and I hope you enjoy the rest.
It would be one thing if I could manage to tell a story in less than 50K in the first place. Even the last fic I wrote for the ancestral contest was slated to be in that range and I had to cut it in half and shave it down just to meet entry. I'm only a chapter and a third into volume 6, but it's going to be huge too, just because there's so much to cover before the big twist of Volume 7.
This is what I get for the very first story I ever wrote ending up 650K words.
5708581
Don't. Pretend they don't exist, rewatch the original, and walk away. That they gave the Pillows an excuse to release a new album is the best merit I can give them. If you do decide to watch them, don't go in expecting FLCL because it just isn't.
The reason I wrote Star Overhead in the first place is because I knew I could do FLCL better than Progressive or Alternative did.
Okay, they're not 'bad' per se, but they are giga mediocre and there's only one point in progressive that, to me, felt like FLCL. Alternative is the right direction, but bad execution as the ending just fucks it all up.
TLDR; Cartoon Network saw the license was up for grabs and bought the rights, then made these as quick cash grabs for nostalgia's sake. I suppose they did well enough that they ordered another two series because later this year we are getting FLCL series 4 & 5, one of which is entirely in CGI. My expectations are very low and I'm afraid they will still not be met. Oh well, at least there will be new Pillows songs.
5708517
But the sequels are bad tho.
When I saw that you had added Secret Tea to your reading lists I kinda did an exasperated sigh, figuring it wouldn't earn a very good score. It's a Jinglemas story, and that means it was done under a time crunch, and that tends to be a problem for me. There's a point about halfway through where the prose suddenly becomes a lot more clipped, the dialogue comes out with less care, and generally the polish fades. That was when I entered time crunch mode and just had to truck through the last half of it in one sitting, quality be damned. I think even then I finished it after the deadline.
It's a nice surprise that the story did as well as it has! Thanks for the review, glad you enjoyed it.
5708499 5708578
I'm the same as Mike. Sci-fi is one of my favorite genres in general, but I don't like it as ponyfic much. Aside from the more simplistic aspects of the show being part of the charm of it for me, I'm not sure why. I think the only truly sci-fi ponyfics I've enjoyed were crossovers, and there aren't even many of those I liked.
5708592
No they aren't. Progressive tried to recapture the original's wackiness with none of its underlying plot, and I found it mostly confusing. I had to read a summary of it to understand what all the character relationships and motivations were, but the action was good, and it was at least decent. Alternative was rather good. It had next to nothing to do with the original, but I thought it told a nicely heartfelt story about the group of girls growing apart and dealing with interpersonal drama. Whereas Progressive all but abandoned the plot to double down on the wackiness, Alternative all but abandoned the wackiness to double down on the character drama. How much that appeals will depend on personal taste, but I rated the original as excellent (equivalent to 6 out of 6 stars), Progressive as borderline decent/good (3.5/6), and Alternative as very good (5/6).
5708581
And the nice thing about rewatching it is that it's only 6 episodes. There are few series I've liked enough to want to buy the DVDs, and this is one, though I still haven't because it's remained rather expensive for how short it is. It's also a great example of a series with an excellent baseball episode.
5708601
This:
Is a bad sign.
But honestly, I rated progressive higher than alternative because it was at least fun to watch some of the time. The fight in episode 4 when freebie honey is playing is about all I remember of the show. The rest of it was super forgettable and didnt make me interested enough in the first place to try and understand it.
I cannot tell you even remotely what happened in alternative. It's been a while, sure, but I also watched Run with the wind, devilman crybaby, GGO, Goblin Slayer, Hinamatsuri, and many more since 2018 was an excellent year for anime, and I can remember scenes and events from all of those shows without trying. That's of course excluding shows I've since re-watched like the excellent megalobox and ssss.gridman, the latter of which is an utterly superior version of the same themes progressive has going on. Of what little I do remember, alternative takes a really strange turn in ep 5 that just doesn't make sense and then goes on to not resolve it or anything with some weird dramatic set piece in ep 6, which of course is where it ends. There's also random footage of the original there for some reason.
All this is to say that I wouldn't consider either of them good under any circumstance. One is just a wild mess, and the other is just a bland mess. Within the year they came out alone, there is a ton of stuff more worth your time, even in their own genres.
Basically, watch SSSS.Gridamn and Bocchi the Rock to get everything the FLCL sequels failed to deliver. (Including a banger • alt rock • soundtrack in bocchi's case)
5708602
In other words, "stop liking what I don't like."
I have seen most of those other shows you mention already and gave them high ratings in my blog.
5708602
For that matter, I'm curious what you mean by Gridman and Bocchi delivering what FLCL sequels didn't. They don't tell the same story at all. FLCL is mostly a coming of age story, whereas Gridman is about someone who invents worlds to deal with crippling loneliness and self-worth issues, and Bocchi is about an extreme introvert that was closer to being a slice of life than having an actual plot. I don't see that either one completes themes that FLCL started. Not that its sequels do, either, but then that's not exactly a new phenomenon, and I'm not among the crowd that dislikes things on principle because of that.
Paul, I find it necessary to be real with you: You simply must make playing Prey an absolute priority.
Having finished the game some weeks ago, I state with certainty that it is perhaps the single best video game I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing. Its greatest strength, though? Not graphics, mechanics, or smoothness, (though those are certainly all impeccable) but story.
The story is rich, compelling, and wonderful to a degree I cannot overstate. Allow me to say this again: Prey is a game created in recent memory with mainstream graphics and an actual. Plot.
To be assured, the bar for video games (plotwise, that is) is incredibly low, but Prey meets and exceeds that expectation by lightyears. For someone who plays games mainly for the storyline, it was an instant favorite.
Well, I could go on with a full review in the comments of a review thread, but I doubt that'd be necessary or altogether helpful. The point remains: Play Prey. Now.
That is all.
I'd forgotten:
About the change in schedule. So you mean I've gotta wait till nearly the end of February to read you taking me to the woodshed over "Cut Me Like a Curse"? Yeesh!
Mike
5708613
I mean, whatever, do what you want. I'm not your mom.
5708616
If Gridman and Bocchi don't have a coming of age theme to them, then I am in the wrong business.
To get to the point where we resolve the plot of Gridman our main antagonist has to be convinced that the way she's living in her own fantasy while being used by her literal alien overlord is not the way to deal with her emotions. The whole show is about getting through to and then rescuing her to help her grow as a person and move on. She makes monsters that reflect her emotional state, she has an inferiority complex about her own appearance, and she genuinely doesn't understand how to treat others while feeling above it all. Frame this with giant monster fights that are sometimes pretty wacky, a serious undercurrent that drives the plot, with some of the same talent that worked on the original FLCL, and you have a well crafted story that drives along similar themes in a similar manner with a fresh take. IMHO, Gridman is what Progressive should've been. The sequel, Dynazenon, is just as good honestly and keeps up the same themes. Very excited for the movie later this year.
Bocchi I think embodies the same spirit of the original FLCL and of course the coming of age here is her going from a high-school girl with guitar skills and crippling social anxiety with no friends to one with friends and a band. Not that she gets all that far in her growth but she does change and manage to pull through for her new friends when they need her. We start off with her uploading youtube cover videos and end with her really on stage living her dream. Don't know if you looked further into it, but Bocchi actually had a lot of live film elements in it. All the toy sections were hand made props, the paper cut out scene was filmed with hand puppets, the Bocchi in the wilderness scene was something they went outside of he studio to capture. The wacky scene shifting, style shifting, experimental fun that really only FLCL had done before is alive and well in Bocchi along with the more literal music video feel of the girls growing together as a band. This is what Alternative should've been.
All in all, I wish the sequels had been better, and I think they would’ve been, if they weren't trying to be FLCL. These two shows weren't and I think they capture the spirit of the original that the sequels just don't.
5708601 5708499
I'd throw out a Sci-Fi suggestion with An Ally Called Preponderance, which is written and reads far more like a Sci-Fi story first and foremost than a Pony fanfic story, but still has pony.
5708667
They do, but it's not quite the same. That's beside the point, though. I thought you were saying that Bocchi and Gridman gave better closure to FLCL than FLCL's own sequels did, which I find nonsensical. If you're saying they did the sequels' themes better, fine, I can agree to that. It doesn't automatically make them not worth watching though. Like you can pretty much categorize the vast majority of shows as isekais, mechas, magical girls, whatever, and you can predict what the plot of any is going to be, but I'm not going to watch just the best example of each. As long as they're still fun and enjoyable, I'll watch a lot of them.
Which is all even more beside the point, as all I was saying to Paul is that since there's still FLCL material being made, most people who watch anime are probably still aware that it exists, so references aren't going over too many heads.
5708706
Does FLCL really need closure though? I feel like it's pretty complete on its own.
I wrote a whole essay about the sequels after the fact back in 2018 and the wound still bleeds, if only because the original means so much to me. Otherwise, yeah, I'm more concerned about the spirit of the thing than the exact details of it.
As far as awareness though, the medium of anime has changed so much and there is so much good stuff that comes out per season these days, it's not like 2010-2015 where you run out of seasonal stuff worth watching and then get pointed to classics. I find that most people are content to watch the new stuff and follow those discussions rather than go back and explore the old shows of the previous decades. it's not so much that less people know about FLCL it's more that there are so many new anime fans that it and other classics only ever get attention when something new comes out. Add onto the fact that the sequels really don't have a very good reputation, like them or not, and they don't draw in new watchers all that much.
Trigun Stampede is the most recent example of this. Until the reboot was announced, the last time I heard anybody talk about it outside of a dedicated server was when people still watched classics like ten years ago. The old anime is still a great show and older anime fans will generally know about it, but there's a good demographic of today's anime fans who've never head of it, and I'd even go so far as to call them the majority now.
5708725
Oh no, I absolutely don't think FLCL needs more closure than it already got on its own. When they said there would be sequels, I was assuming they'd be Haruka and Naota reconnecting in the future or something. Progressive tries to be a sequel but doesn't feel very connected, and Alternative tells a new story that has only the most tenuous connection. I still liked that story, but it could have been its own show; having FLCL in the title did nothing for it aside from attract viewership (which was probably entirely the point) and then leave people scratching their heads as to what they had to do with each other.
I wasn't suggesting that the fact there's still FLCL stuff coming out meant you could assume people had watched it, just that you probably could assume they'd at least heard of it, and if it did catch their eye, they would have more likely gone back to see the original first than is the case for Trigun, since the former is a sequel (implying you do need to see it for context) and the latter is a reboot (implying you don't).
In my own anime review blogs, I do cover a lot of older series, and I hope I've turned some people on to going back to watch the ones I rated highly, though it doesn't seem to be the case. I only know for sure of one or two instances where someone did. Trigun's a great one, and I'm bracing myself for the reboot to be substandard. I gave the original an excellent (highest rating) and its movie a very good (next step down).
5708821
Eh, it's studio Orange. Unless they blow the story really bad, and the first episode seems like they're going for a more modern take on the manga, I think it'll be fine. The action is already stellar just like it was in Land of the Lustrous, and Vash is devintely still Vash, so I'm not worried.
5708913
I just wish Land of the Lustrous had gotten an actual ending...
Late seeing this, but thanks for the review! I'm glad you enjoyed Slumberland - and Gertie, too! The research for this was a lot of fun, and it's always cool to see people embracing that aspect as well as just the pony. Glad you enjoyed the prose, too, it's always something I try to have fun with. Thanks!
Thank you as always.
Sorry for the radio silence. Things have been tough lately. I hope you'll like the next one up!
(My secret goal is to trick you into reading so many of my stories I'll be forced to write more quickly.)